1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to manual marine winches. More specifically, the present invention relates to a compound handle providing a safety loading system for a manual marine swivel winch for barges.
2. Background Information
Winches have been used in many applications. Manual swivel and stationary marine winches have been widely used in barges, tow boats and the like. The use of barges, sometimes called lighters, to transport cargo is common in marine transportation. Barges may be used singly, or in groups generally referred to as barge trains or tows. A barge tow can have up to 40 barges therein (five wide and eight deep). The barges in a barge train carrying goods in harbors and along rivers are, usually, lashed tightly together through winches (located on opposite ends of or in the four corners of each barge) and associated cable lines, two or three (even up to five) abreast, with several successive rows of such barges in one barge train. Typically a manual swivel winch is pivotally attached to a D-ring on a barge boat deck and spools a towing cable on a rotating drum, whereas a stationary winch is welded or otherwise secured to the deck.
These marine winches must be quick and easy to use. Barge tows must be first assembled, and must disassembled for movement through locks, then reassembled on the opposite side of the locks. The marine winches are often exposed to an abrasive environment and can become immersed in coal, ore or other material being transported. Consequently, these winches also must have a sturdy construction. Examples of manual winches are sold by W. W. Patterson Company and Nashville Bridge Company. The most common type of manual winch includes a pivoting pawl, or dog, engaging a ratchet gear of a ratchet for the winch. The pawl prevents the unwinding of the reel during engagement of the pawl. W. W. Paterson manufactures a sturdy manual marine winch having an open bottom configuration that saves material and provides easy winch clean-up in U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,450 which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Additionally, W. W. Patterson manufactures a sturdy manual marine winch that incorporates a safety load release mechanism improving the safety to the operator in U.S. Pat. No. 6,572,083 which is also incorporated herein by reference.
The '083 patent discloses one type of safe load release mechanism for the safety of the operators. There still is a need to address the loading operation of the winches. The loading at high tensions can provide some of the same type of dangers to the operator as the load releasing operation, particularly where additional leverage is used for loading. Additional leverage is often provided through a length (e.g. four feet) of pipe, also affectionately known as a “cheater bar”, is placed over the loading lever to effectively increase the length of the loading lever. The mechanical advantage this provides is obvious. The increased in length creates additional concerns since even a small rotation of the drum, less than one gear tooth, will correspond to a noticeable movement in the end of the cheater bar. Further at high tension this can make such bar movement very rapid, such as might occur if the operator slips, or otherwise loses his grip.
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a manual marine swivel winch which provides simple efficient safe loading operation. It is a further object to provide a system that can be easily retrofitted onto existing marine winches.